Brief Original ReportPilot study of a dog walking randomized intervention: Effects of a focus on canine exercise
Section snippets
Study design and participants
A randomized control trial was conducted with measurements at baseline, 6 weeks and 12 weeks post-intervention. Primary outcome measures were step count via pedometry (avg. steps per day over one week), total minutes of weekly walking, and total minutes of weekly dog walking.
Recruitment, randomization and mailing/contact were performed by an independent research assistant; with the researchers blind to the assigned study condition. IRB approval was obtained and all participants provided initial
Participant flow
The 58 participants who met the inclusion criteria and completed the baseline questionnaire package were randomly assigned to control (n = 28) and canine exercise message groups (n = 30) (Fig. 1). Loss to follow-up (Fig. 1) was not associated with any demographic variable or behavioral outcome.
Baseline characteristics of respondents
There were no significant differences between the control group and the intervention group in demographic or baseline physical activity profiles, supporting the randomization procedure.1 Mostly participants
Discussion
This study examined the viability of using messages targeting canine exercise as a physical activity intervention. Our hypothesis that dog walking could be a viable platform for increasing physical activity was well-supported. Participants in both conditions demonstrated increases in walking that can be considered large effect sizes (e.g. > 60 min per week). The finding was not present when walking without dogs was evaluated, supporting the fidelity of dog walking as the intervention target and
Conflict of interest statement
The authors report no conflict of interest for this research.
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